Pay Underground fare on your mobile

Tube passengers will soon be able to pay for journeys using their mobile phones.

The scheme will allow people to pay for using the train simply by swiping a phone with an in-built Oyster card across the ticket-reading machine.

Transport for London, Nokia and the network O2 are in talks over the plans which will be extended to bus journeys, trams and some overland journeys across the capital.

The project has also recently been expanded to incorporate new technology such as the VisaPayWave card, which combines a credit card, Oyster card and a 'contactless' payment system which can be used to authorise small purchases at some retailers.

Nokia's system is likely to use a microchip inside the phone which activates whenever it is passed over an Oyster card reader.

The price of the journey would be deducted from a top-up account added to the traveller's monthly phone bill.

The launch could mark a significant expansion of the Oyster card scheme, which allows travellers to pay for all their journeys using a single swipe card.

It could also lead to mobile phones being used to pay for other forms of transport across the country.